Long distance tow
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Topic: Long distance tow
Posted By: frozebubba
Subject: Long distance tow
Date Posted: 14 Aug 2019 at 1:22am
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I just finished about 10 months on the road with my 2016 171 behind a 2016 RAM 1500 ecodiesel crew-cab with 6'4" bed with 3.55 rear axle ratio and factory TBC and thought some might be interested in the stats. Round trip Fairbanks to
Gainesville Florida and return; about 13,000 miles towing. The Pod weighed 3200 lb loaded (max book) with about 10 gal of freshwater; there was 400 lb on the tongue. Spare tire on the rear and a Stromberg-Carlson CC-255 rack on the tongue that carried my bike Had a Yakima Skybox 16 and a 10' fishing kayak on racks on the Leer 180 canopy on the truck for the
whole trip. Added a $50 anti-sway bar on one side and an extended ball carrier (13" hole to center of ball) so I could open and close my tailgate. The whole rig (Pod+TV) weighed 10,500 lb. On the way down from July
through October '18 I had no pressing goals and averaged 16.0 mpg for 15 of 32
fillups when the trailer was on for the whole tank. On the way back in April and May of '19, I had a date goal for return to Fairbanks and got a late start so I was more focused on keeping it at 65 as long as the road surface allowed, averaged 14.3 mpg and never unhooked the trailer, This part of the run was 5,978 miles. Pushing it in cooler temperatures and notably heavier prevailing westerlies than in the summer probably accounted for most of the reduced fuel economy on the way back. I got to test the anti-sway
during two emergency dodges (once for moose and once for a mallard and her
brood) at 65 mph on the way back. It was hard to focus on what the trailer was doing immediately after being startled but all I saw in the rear view mirrors was a single ~2" sway to either side before stabilization in both cases. I never had an emergency stop. I was really glad to have the sway control bar during about 50 miles of slush coming north out of Jasper, AB. I've had the truck+trailer briefly up to 75-80 mph to expedite a pass several times and nothing acted fishy. My self adjusting brakes on the Pod got locked on while in Florida so I had them and the wheel bearings replaced but opted out of self-adjusting brakes this time. Also had to repack the wheel bearings on the way down in Colorado when my pre-flight revealed movement when trying to shake the wheels while on the ground. Otherwise, no problems and the Pod seems none the worse for wear. Total miles on the Pod are now ~17,000.
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Replies:
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 14 Aug 2019 at 3:55am
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Great summary! What a trip... Looks like you have your rig dialed in right where you want it. In retrospect I wish I'd done the same as you and got manual adjusting brakes when I replaced mine last year. I don't think the self adjustment system Lippert uses is worth the trouble. For those of you with gasoline TV's, diesel contains about 13% more energy per gallon than gasoline so 16.0 mpg on a diesel is the equivalent efficiency of about 14.2 on a gasser and 14.3 is the equivalent of 12.7 mpg. So this is right in there with pretty much the best case towing fuel economy numbers anyone is reporting at those speeds. ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: podwerkz
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2019 at 6:56pm
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Wow....great trip report....I just returned from a trip that lasted just over 3 weeks and about 3000 miles. And figuring it as cost per mile, its very close to the same as gasoline due to the fact that diesel is typically priced about 15% higher per gallon....the spread varies seasonally and regionally of course. ------------- r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten! |
Posted By: Olddawgsrule
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2019 at 8:48am
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Great read! Great report! You read like an individual that pays attention to the details. Good for you! My 182g started it's travels in April 2018 and I'm very close to your mileage and time on the road. I have an issue with mine so I pass this along as something to check. Inspect the axle, the tongue and frame (especially slide side) for straightness. I don't wish to see anyone else in my predicament. Wish you many safe and happy travels! ------------- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJduGeZNFgtptH67leItRFQ - Byways no Highways 2017 Tacoma http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=72408 - Truck Camper Build 2004 F150 My Overlander |
Posted By: frozebubba
Date Posted: 05 Sep 2019 at 10:35pm
| A belated thanks to everyone for the kind remarks on my long distance post! |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2019 at 1:24pm
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I want to do a trip to Alaska next year with our 179 towing with our 2010 Frontier. I don't see us trading either truck or trailer ahead of that trip. We've had a number of long trips already, but an Alaska trip would also mean it would be our first international trip since we would need to drive through one or more Canadian provinces to get there. I appreciate the post about your trip. I generally limit my towing speed to 60 mph. Even so, I wouldn't like to encounter a moose or a mallard and brood. ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2019 at 5:30pm
You hit a moose, it's going to leave a mark.  ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2019 at 7:30pm
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It might annoy the moose. Then there could be some real trouble.
------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: crankster78
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2019 at 9:33am
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Greetings; Much of the time we hear about Pod problems on this site. Great to hear about someone using a pod for long distance heavy duty travel. I've had few problems problems with the 2 I've owned. I'll be 80 next year, and don't know how much longer I'll be towing. I'm hoping to get a couple of more years in depending on health. Crankster78 2015 R-179 ------------- Crankster 78 R-179 2015 |
Posted By: podwerkz
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2019 at 10:19am
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80! Just a pup....  ------------- r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten! |